Krissy Lefebvre’s Story

Happy New Year!

Is it just me or does 2012 just FEEL like it’s going to be an amazing year? Well I gotta tell you, if the rest of the year is like our new years kickoff, I’m certainly thinking it might be!

This months featured significant other, it seems, has been destined to live the BIG dream. If I had to use one word to describe how I receive her energy.. it would be DETERMINED. No wonder why she met and partnered with a chef that, by all meaning of the word… EMBODIES the breadth and obsession of the culinary profession. She has used her skills as a powerful attorney both on the big screen and also in her charity work and still has the passion to help her husband, Chef Ludo Lefebvre with his new endeavour on the Sundance Channel, called Ludo Bites America.

I’m talking about none other than Kristine Lefebvre. *also known on Twitter as @FrenchChefWife

Kristine, who prefers to be called Krissy, is a TRUE Renaissance Woman. Part Model, Part Attorney, Part PR & Advertising & Promotional guru, wife of a celebrated chef and now a full time mom of TWINS! *I honestly don’t know how she does it all! A little more about Mrs Lefebvre:

Krissy worked her way through college as a stockbroker and as a model through law school. After receiving her law degree, she served as a top level attorney at several major companies. Her background in business and law makes her well suited for a job that requires her to wear many hats. Her credentials also secured her a position to compete on The Apprentice, where she completed 11 out of 12 tasks before being “fired” in the boardroom during the sixth season of the hit TV show. A self-described “Army brat,” Krissy spent the majority of her childhood in Hawaii and Denver. In her spare time, Krissy is actively involved in philanthropic work and serves on the Board of Directors for the charity C.H.A.S.E. for Life, which provides CPR training for new mothers. Krissy is also a new mother herself, as she and husband Ludo welcomed twins in April 2011. – Sundance Channel

I’m sure you’ll find her answers as exciting as I did! Take it away, Krissy…

What were your first impressions when you first realized that by being with your restaurant man/woman, that you have become a part of the restaurant world?

A. It is hard to speak about the first impressions because it happened slowly over time. I was a practicing attorney when I met Ludo and I did not immediately become part of the restaurant world. What I did start to do almost immediately was ensure that most of my client entertaining happened at L”Orangerie & Bastide restaurants. The food always gave us something interesting to talk about. Additionally, being with Ludo almost immediately increased the quality of the food at the firms holiday parties because I would always campaign to have the parties at the restaurant where he was working. I realized that if I did not entertain where he worked, I would not see him.

When did you know that you had what it took, within the parameters of his/her career, to find success in your relationship?

This was never an issue. I have always had my own career, so early on when it could have been an issue, just like any relationship, I had my own identity. So I was not dependent on fitting into his career to make our relationship work. I traveled a lot for work and attended a lot of professional sports events (my practice area was focused in the area of sports). **Maybe you should ask Ludo this question…”How did he handle dating a woman that hung out with professional athletes on a regular basis??

Our life is much different now (married 12 years) and I work with and for Ludo. I realized that I had represented so many athletes and celebrities and built their brands, but no one was doing the same for Ludo, so it became my life. Now I work with him in the restaurants too, although we are working on scaling back my time in the actual restaurant so that I may focus on my marketing & PR and building some special events in the food space.

What is the BEST part of being married to someone in the restaurant industry?

This is an easy one, the food! I love good food and Ludo always makes me great food. Not only do I love Ludos food, but he is friends with some of the greatest chefs in the world, so we have no excuse to ever have a bad meal. *Well, that is unless I am cooking.

How do you handle the holidays knowing he/she is going to be busy at work?

As I mentioned above, early on I did a pretty good job to make sure our holiday parties were at the restaurant, so it worked out well. As time went on, I would just go to the restaurant with my friends and/or family. We always got a great meal, and did not have to do the dishes so it worked out in my favor. Now with LudoBites, we just don’t open on holidays. We try to make it a priority to spend our holidays with family or friends. Now that we have the twins, this is something that is extremely important to us. Ludo is usually still busy during the holidays, because we like to have big dinners, so he never gets a break.

How has achieving acclaim and success, within the restaurant industry, changed your relationship?

We live and work together 24/7. It has not really changed our relationship, but it definitely makes you understand how to put a line through business and personal. We need to make the time to “Leave the Office.” That might mean just turning off our computers, getting off Twitter or Facebook for a day or so. Although we have reached a certain level of success we still have a long way to go, so we are just like any other small business out there – We work ALOT! So it is important to make time for each other and our family.